Right Place, Wrong Time
by Gothikiisu
Summary: Dean Winchester wakes up one morning to find that it's not 2012 anymore...it's 1989. *This story is going to contain a lot of fluff, because come on, little Sammy's a sweetie!*


**Right Place, Wrong Time**

**A supernatural Fanfic**

"DeanDeanDeanDeanDeeeeeean!" The voice screeched, startling Dean awake. He sat up to find a small child standing at the end of his bed screaming hysterically.

"Woah, kid! Who the hell are you!"

"Deeeeeeeeeean!" the child shrieked again, causing Dean to cover his ears with his hands. How did this kid know his name? And where the hell was he? Wait...is that...?

"Sam?" Dean was so dumbfounded that he could hardly get the word out. The child immediately fell silent, his eyes wide with terror and filling with tears.

"How do you know my name? Where's Dean? I want Deeeean!"

Dean was still trying to remember how to form sentences. Where what why when how the fuck? was just about all he could think. He got up from the bed slowly, never taking his eyes off the terrified child. Scaring him further would only cause more trouble and freaky as this may be, it was his brother.

Once he managed to tear his eyes away from little Sammy, Dean noticed where he was. It was a house they had rented for three months when he was ten. Which would make Sam six.

"Where's Dean?" Sam asked again, his voice trembling.

Dean turned to see him sat in the corner with bleary eyes, hugging his knees to his chest. The sight just about broke Dean's heart. He slowly stepped towards the terrified child and knelt in front of him.

"Sammy?" Dean spoke as gently as he could "Sammy, can you tell me what year it is?"

Sam just looked at him, puzzled. He seemed to be thinking hard about what to say.

"I'm six" he said simply, which made Dean chuckle.

"Right. So...1989 then, huh?"

Okay. So how the hell has Dean gone to sleep in 2011 and woken up in 1989 with his six-year-old brother screaming at him? And now that he thought of it, where was the Dean of this time? He knew John would be away on a hunt, but 10-year-old Dean should be here looking after Sam.

"What's you're name?" came a small voice, pulling Dean from his thoughts. Sams little eyes were now full of curiosity rather than fear, though there was still a hint of it there.

What was Dean suppose to say? That he was Sam's big brother from 22 years into the future? Yeah, that would go down well. Settling on telling Sam his real name, he let out a slow breath and spoke.

"I'm Dean"

"No you're not!" Sam shook his head causing his mop of hair to swish about.

"Sure I am" Dean said calmly, smiling in what he hoped was a friendly way. "So I have the same name as your brother, huh?"

Sam's eyes began to well up again at the mention of his brother, and Dean recoiled slightly. The poor child was sobbing his heart out, and all Dean wanted was to pull his little Sammy into his arms and make it better. But he couldn't - he'd freak the poor kid out even more.

Dean had looked for any clues to how he'd got here, and had even tried calling Cas. But, it was no good and so he resorted to taking care of little Sammy and cooking his supper. After all, he couldn't go too far and leave Sam alone and taking him out would result in problems if anyone saw them and recognised him. Dean was strangely comfortable with this though, and Sam seemed more comfortable now too. He could tell that the small boy was still wary of him, but he was sure he could see recognition there too. It was as if Sam felt a sense of familiarity towards this strange man who had appeared in his bedroom, but was that possible?

Watching him eat, Dean couldn't help but smile. Sam was such a cutie even if he was a whiney little bastard sometimes. Not that he would ever say that out loud.

"Dean?"

"Yeah, Sammy?" A giggle was the only reply, "What's so funny, huh?"

"You called me Sammy!" Sam declared in a voice so full of glee that it made Dean's heart swell in his chest.

"Sure did, now eat up"

"My big brother calls me Sammy" he grinned with pride, but the smile soon faded as his eyes welled up again. "Why did he go away?"

Dean rushed to his side, not caring anymore about how wierd this all was and pulled his baby brother into his arms, cradling him.

"Shh, it's ok Sammy" he soothed "I'm here...I'm here"

Dean spent most of the night comforting Sam, who was too afraid to sleep without his big brother. It was heart wrenching to know that as far as this innocent little thing knew, his brother had left him. Dean wanted to tell him so badly, to let him know that he was right here. But he couldn't.

At first, Dean just sat by the bed so that he was visible to Sam at all times. He soon realised that the kid wasn't happy with that, though. Just as he was falling asleep a small hand reached out to grab his sleeve and tugged.

"What's is it?" Dean asked groggily, but Sam just pulled harder. Realising what Sam wanted, Dean cautiously got on the bed and lay down beside the now smiling child. Sam scooted over to Dean and cuddled in as tight as possible.

Dean wasn't really sure how to react, and he was confused as to why Sam was so comfortable with him like this. But then he heard...

"My Dean"

Dean felt a lump in his throat and held Sam tightly. He didn't know if Sam knew who he was, or if he had just become attached because of how he might associate him with the Dean he knew. Regardless, it was overwhelming for obvious reasons.

Sammy slept like a log, but Dean didn't sleep a wink. He couldn't decide if this was out of fear or the intense feeling of protection he felt for the sleeping form that lay beside him.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Dean was once again woken up by a shouting Sam. Thankfully, he was shrieking with what sounded like excitement rather than fear.<p>

"Deeeeean! Wake up, Big Dean! Wake uuuuup!"

Dean groaned and rubbed sleep away from his eyes. Big Dean? He managed a chuckle in his state of half-sleep.

"Mornin' Sammy"

Sam giggled happily and lunged at Dean, throwing his arms around his neck.

"You're still here!" he was so excited that Dean could barely control the grin that spread across his face. "But my Dean's still on here" his smile faded a little at that.

"He'll come back, kid. I promise you your brother would never leave you, he loves you more than anything, okay?" Dean spoke softly and held on to Sam. Normally, he would curse himself for bordering on chick-flick like that, but he had always comforted Sammy with words when they were young, when his little bother needed comfort. So, it felt oddly normal behave this way now.

"Okay, Dean" replied Sam, his voice full of trust. Why is he trusting Dean so easily?

"So, what do you want to do today, Sammy?" Dean asked as he got Sam's clothes ready.

"Ummmmm" Sam looked so deep in thought, it was adorable. Then, his face lit up like a christmas tree; "Can we go to the zoo?"

"The zoo?" Dean hadn't been expecting that.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, beaming.

Dean thought for a moment. Maybe it would be nice to do something fun for a change? It would make Sam happy...but, hold on, he was forgetting himself a little here. Yesterday, he had accepted the fact that it wasn't a good idea to go out and about with Sam incase someone recognised him and freaked out about the strange adult that was with him. They had lived here for three months when they were kids, and if Dean remembered rightly, a lot of the locals had come to know them.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Sammy" the poor kid looked wounded, and a thought occurred to Dean; "What's the date?"

Sam gave Dean a puzzled look before taking off across the room to dig out a calendar from a pile of toys.

"July 19th! Why?"

"No reason...what about you're Dad, Sam? Where's he?"

"He's out working. Been gone two weeks now and we don't know when he'll be back" Sam looked so sad, and it made Dean feel angry at John for leaving his sons alone so young.

Dean figured that no one would question him for being with Sam. John had only started renting the house four weeks ago and had only been around for two of them, so he doubted that he would have spoken to enough people for them to know that there was only one adult in the family...

"Okay, Sammy. Get yourself dressed, we're going to the zoo" Sam squealed and jumped up and down on the spot. "I'll be downstairs making pancakes!"

Pancakes? The zoo? What is happening to you, dude? Dean thought as he made his way to the kitchen, but he then decided that he didn't care. He had always done everything he could to make Sam happy, and God help him, he actually wanted to take his baby brother to the zoo.

* * *

><p>"Sam, get back here!" Dean bellowed, not really meaning to shout that loud.<p>

The little bastard was way too excited and was flying off somewhere through the crowd. Dean had told him to stay put, but no, whacking him in the privates with the toy sword that Dean now regrets buying and running off in a fit of laughter is obviously more fun.

Once Dean had recovered enough to stand up straight he took off through the crowd to find Sam, ignoring the judgemental looks being thrown his way. He was nowhere to be seen.

"DEEEEEEAN!" came a screech from behind. Dean span around, glaring in the direction of the sound. Was that fear or excitement?

"SAM?" his heart was in his throat and he just about kept the blind panic out of his voice. He sped towards the squealing and eventually found his baby brother, who was perfectly fine.

"Wooooah!" Sam was jumping up and down on the spot, pointing excitedly at a giraffe "He's so tall!"

Sam beamed, while Dean felt totally embarrassed about his little panic 'episode'. He tried to look casual as he closed the rest of the distance between them, which only earned him more funny looks. He just ended up looking like he was creeping up on unsuspecting children. Great.

"He's my brother!" Dean snapped as a woman made a move for Sam, clearly under the impression that the older man was going to snatch him or something. She recoiled looking like a deer in headlights.

It was hard to be mad at something that looked so innocent and happy, though, especially knowing just how rough it'll get.

"You should see yourself as a grown up, Sasquatch" Dean muttered under his breath, earning a confused look from Sam.

"How do you know what I'd be like when I grow up?" he asked.

Great. Now what the hell am I suppose to say to that? A change in subject would probably be best...avoidance always was something he was good at. So, clearing his throat, he kneeled down so that he was at Sam's level.

"Uh...listen, Sam. You gotta stay with me when I ask you to, alright?" Sam nodded his head, making his hair swish again and Dean stood up. "Good. What do you want to see next?"

"Can we have ice cream?" he asked, taking Dean's hand and leading him off towards the food court without waiting for an answer.

"Ice cream it is, then" Dean muttered, a goofy smile threatening to take over his face.

* * *

><p>"Hello Dean"<p>

Cas' voice made Dean jump. He looked up to find the angel standing in front of him and had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he hadn't been aware of him at all.

"Should you really be popping up in a public place like this?" Dean asked accusingly.

"They can't see me. As far as they are concerned I will never have been here." Castiel answered in his trademark matter-of-fact tone.

Dean looked around to find that time had literally stopped. Everything and everyone had frozen in place, like a snapshot. What the hell?

"Are you even allowed to do that?"

"Of course"

Dean blinked. Is there anything these feathery sons of bitches can't do? he thought, before shaking his head and glaring at Cas.

"Wait, what the hell took you so long? I called you yesterday morning!"

"Dean, you know perfectly well how difficult time travel can be, even for us" Cas replied, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Well, come on then. Take me back." Dean was standing now, waiting for Cas to do his touch-forehead-and-zap-us-home thing. But he didn't. He just stood there, a curious expression on his face.

"Well?" he pressed, and Castiel sighed as he looked away.

"I can't" admitted the angel.

"What do you mean, you can't?"

Cas looked at Sam, Dean following his gaze.

"Is this to do with Sam?" he asked.

"I believe so" answered Cas, looking back at Dean before moving to sit on the bench.

Dean sighed and sat back down. The two men were now either side of the small child, who was frozen at a moment of complete enjoyment. Sams' eyes were full of happiness as he clutched onto his ice cream cone and stared in wonder at the animals before him. It was an image that Dean would treasure.

"The Dean of this time cannot be found, and to take you back would leave Sam...susceptible" Cas continued, "although no one seems to know how you came to be here instead.."

"Susceptible? To what?" Dean asked.

"To the demon. If he came to find that Sam was without protection, that would be a problem."

So Dean would have to stay, no other way around it. He wouldn't leave Sam now anyway, knowing that he wouldn't be replaced by the 'right' Dean if he went home now. He felt a stab of guilt as he thought back to the night before. Sam had been so broken up over the Dean he knew not being there, and he was obviously now very attached to 'Big Dean', so how the hell could he be so selfish as to abandon him without a thought just because Cas showed up!

"I must go now, Dean. I will try my best to reach you again when I have more information" and then Cas was gone.

But to be honest, Dean had completely forgotten he was there. The world around him roared into life again, and Sam turned to him with a look of such delight that Dean wouldn't rather be anywhere else.

* * *

><p>"Please Sam!" begged Dean, completely losing all patience.<p>

"Nooooo!" wailed Sam.

"Seriously, kid! YOU NEED TO SLEEP!" Dean shouted, not really meaning to sound as terrifying as he apparently did, judging by the look of absolute terror plastered all over the poor boys face.

Oh God, please don't cry again! Dean thought, cautiously walking over to where Sam was now sniffling and using what he liked to call the 'puppy eyes of death' and picked him up.

"I'm sorry, Sammy. I'm just tired, and so are you. So we need to sleep, ok?" he spoke gently, not wanting to deal with any more screaming. His eardrums really couldn't take it, but to Dean's relief Sam just nodded and nuzzled into him as he walked up the stairs.

Sam was quiet until they got to his room, but then he seemed to panic.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Dean asked, his voice full of worry.

"I'm scared you'll be gone tomorrow too" replied Sam, clutching to Dean's shirt so tightly that his tiny knuckles were turning white.

"I am not going anywhere. You hear me? I am not leaving you so don't you worry" he smiled at Sam, who now looked more content.

"Can you sleep in my room again?"

"Tell you what, how about we sleep in the main bedroom, huh? We'll have more room that way." Dean smiled

Once again, Sam only nodded and Dean carried him into the room where John usually slept. Placing Sam on the bed, he moved around to the other side and took of his overshirt and jeans before getting into bed. Sam, who was already in his pyjamas, got under the covers too and cuddled up to Dean again.

Dean lay in silence, thinking about what he had said to Sam about not going anywhere. He shouldn't have said that...should he? He would have to go home eventually, and now doing so felt like breaking a promise.

Dude, you're screwed.

* * *

><p>Little Sammy slept peacefully at Deans side, but Dean didn't sleep a wink. What did Cas mean when he said that his younger self couldn't be found? Was he really gone? The thought of Sam being alone at any age was terrifying for Dean - he would never leave his brother if he could help it, which means that something was seriously wrong...but where on earth could he be? Then, he began to panic.<p>

Oh fuck, what if I'm dead?...No, dude I can't be dead. If you died in the past you'd be gone in the future...which I am...but then I wouldn't be here at all would I?...Fuck.

Dean's thoughts raced, confusing him to the point where he couldn't get his mind to structure them properly anymore.

"Dean?" came a small voice from the darkness, "are you awake?"

"Yeah Sammy, I'm awake. What's wrong?"

"I had a bad dream" whimpered Sam.

"Nothing's gonna get you while I'm around, alright?" Dean soothed, pulling the boy closer, "you wanna tell me about it?"

"You were gone, and..." Sam trailed off, a tiny sob escaping his lips before he continued, "my Dad and my Dean never came back and I was all alone!"

"You will never be alone, Sammy. Never, you hear me?" But right now, he wasn't really sure if he believed it.

The next morning, Dean decided it would be a good idea to go a library and see if he could find anything of use to this completely bizarre situation. He got Sam up extra early, and silenced his protests with a pile of pancakes that were covered a ridiculous amount of chocolate syrup.

"What are we doing today, Dean?" asked Sam through a mouthful of breakfast.

"We gotta go to the library, Sammy" Dean answered, and Sam's face lit up, making him grin like the Cheshire cat. Even this age, Sam really did love books.

Sam continued to wolf down his enormous breakfast, and Dean enjoyed the sight so much that he almost forgot to eat his own.

* * *

><p>Dean left his baby brother in the kids section of the library, surrounded by a sea of books as he sat in the middle of the floor. He figured it was probably best not to find the books he was looking for with Sam around. The kid would be likely to ask a lot of questions, and Dean wasn't sure he could answer them just yet. It was confusing as hell without any information, and it would probably scare Sammy half to death.<p>

Once Dean had found the section he was looking for, he grabbed a few books and made his way to a table. There had to be something here somewhere...maybe one of the angels did it, he thought, remembering when Cas had sent him back to when his parents were young. Maybe that was it - am I suppose to be fixing something here? The hunter sighed and shook his head. None of that explained why his younger self wasn't here.

"Found you!" Dean heard, and he looked up to see Sam standing there with a big grin on his face.

"Hey buddy," he said, putting an arm around Sam's small shoulders, "you alright?" Sam nodded, still smiling.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" asked Sam, but before Dean could answer, he was interrupted.

"Hey, Sam!" said the woman, sounding very happy to see him.

Dean tensed, tightening his grip on the boys shoulders only to relax when he saw that Sam was smiling widely at her.

"Hey, Mrs Jones!" he replied happily.

Mrs Jones seemed to notice Dean's reaction and eyed him up suspiciously. Dean gave just as good as he got.

"And who's this?" she asked Sam, her voice still light but with an obvious hint of suspicion that Dean hated.

Who am I? Who the hell are you? Dean thought, trying hard to keep his face neutral for Sams sake.

"This is Dean!" he exclaimed, Mrs Jones' eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Dean smirked and gave her a 'didn't see that one coming, did ya?' look.

"Surely this isn't Dean, Sam?"

Sam looked confused for a moment, but then the penny dropped and his eyes lit up with amusement as he said; "ohhh! No, this is a different Dean. Big Dean."

Dean spluttered, not expecting him to actually call him that in front of another person, let alone a hot chick who was now smirking and giving him sex eyes.

"I, uhh.." he began, cutting off any chance of Sam continuing with the oh-so-embarassing nicknames, "I'm his uncle. I'm looking after him for a while until John gets back with Dean."

Sam gave him a look that made his chest feel tight. The poor kid looked hurt.

"Oh, is that so?" Oh christ, she's flirting.

"Yep" Dean stated simply, forcing a smile.

"Well, if you need a hand Sam knows where to find me" she cooed, her voice dripping with seduction. As she turned to leave, Dean rolled his eyes and Sam began to giggle.

"What?" hissed Dean.

"She liiikes yooou!" And at that, Dean couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

><p>Back at the house, Dean was playing some of the records in the room he had shared with Sam all those years ago, and the scene that played out before him when his favourite song of the time came on is something he will never forget. Sam came bounding in to the room, turned up the volume and proceeded to air guitar.<p>

Dean just stared for a moment, wondering when the hell Sam ever liked this stuff. But then an affectionate smile graced his features as he watched the small boy jump around like as if the world could end at any moment and he had to get in as much fun as possible before it did.

Ah, who cares? Sammy deserves to have a little fun.

"Come on, Dean!"

"W-what? No, dude. No!"

"COME OOON!"

And before Dean knew it, Sam had him on his feet. He felt stupid at first, but the look on Sam's face as he laughed made him stop caring. He wanted to keep making him laugh and smile and feel good, because lets face it - the future ain't so bright.

"Yeeeeeeaaaahh!" exclaimed Sam as the record came to an end. He was grinning from ear to ear, and Dean loved it.

"I gotta hand it to you Sammy, you can rock" Dean chuckled, flopping back onto the bed.

"You're sooo awesome, Dean!" Sam said, jumping up onto the bed so that he was kneeling beside Deans head and smiled down at him.

"Damn straight, kiddo" Dean returned the smile.

Sam's smile grew wider, only to falter as his eyes lifted and fixed on the other side of the room.

"Sam?" Dean frowned and followed his little brothers gaze. His eyes fell on Castiel, who was now standing in the corner of the room, "Oh...hey."

"Dean..? Who is that?" Sam whispered in a hushed and panicked tone, keeping his eyes fixed on the stranger in a trench coat.

"His name is Castiel, Sam. Don't worry, he's a friend of mine" Dean spoke softly as he sat up. He really did not want a repeat performance of 'screech 'till ya burst an eardrum'.

"But...how did he get here?" he asked, his voice a little louder now.

"Uh..." What am I suppose to say?

Castiel gave Dean a warning look and said; "I came in through the door, as you would expect...it was not locked."

Sam looked sceptical for a moment, and jumped up declaring that he remembered Dean locking the door and that he was going to check. Dean shot Cas a panicked look as Sam ran for the stairs, and the angel flicked his wrist without even a blink.

"It was unlocked." stated Sam as he came back into the room, "You must have not done it right, Dean."

"What?" Dean spluttered, shooting Cas a look, "Are you saying I can't lock a door properly, kid?"

"Well, yes. That is exactly what I'm saying. Adults are stupid!" replied Sam, a playful smile curving his lips.

"Oh, that's it! It's on!" Dean growled, pretending to be angry as he jumped up to catch Sam who ran away giggling.

* * *

><p>Dean had cooked dinner and insisted that Cas stay so that they could talk once Sam was asleep. He had refused at first, but Dean had got his way eventually...he was sure the angel wanted to stay really, they were practically family after all.<p>

"So, Sammy" Dean said, putting two plates of food in front of both Sam and Cas before turning to grab his own, "Cas here has been looking for your big brother."

"Really?" Sam's little face lit up as he grinned at the angel across the table.

Castiel, who was suddenly looking rather nervous, said; "Yes. I am doing my best.."

Dean noticed the sudden nervousness, but now wasn't the time to bring that up. Sam, by the look of it, had noticed too and seemed to be seriously confused by the way Castiel spoke. After a moment, though, he was smiling again.

"I hope you can, if you do I'll be your friend forever like Dean!"

At this, Castiel smiled. It was a the smallest of smiles but Dean was sure he'd seen it. It was nice to see considering how stone faced the angel usually looked. But of course, there were more pressing matters at hand. He hadn't eaten all day, and he'd be damned if he had to eat cold food.

"Eat your dinner, Sam. You too Cas!" Dean gestured to their plates and proceeded to shovel his into his mouth.

Oh, come here baby! I've waited all damn day for you!

"I'll be right downstairs, ok buddy?"

"But I don't wanna be on my own!" Sam whimpered, clutching Dean's shirt as he tucked him in.

"You aren't alone, Sammy. I'll be right downstairs. Cas is here too, so we're both here if you need us. Okay?"

Sam nodded, but didn't look convinced. Dean couldn't blame the poor kid for being so clingy, but he still found himself wondering why Sam had taken to him so quickly. Sure, he thought it might be the name association and all that, but Dean still wondered...did he know?

"I'll be up later, I promise. When you wake up I'll be right here." he added, leaving the room and heading downstairs.

If I'm not carefull I'm gonna turn into a chick!...Nah, don't be a dick, Dean. It's Sammy. It's different when it's Sam.

"Is he alright?" Castiel asked.

"Yeah, he's ok," Dean replied, sitting down on the sofa with a heavy sigh, "He's doing really well, considering everything...maybe a little too well."

Castiel cocked his head to the side and frowned, "What do you mean?"

"I don't know, Cas. He just seems way to comfortable with me. He's gotten really attached to me, and I've been here what? Three days?" Dean sighed.

"I see. Maybe he can sense something within you...a familiarity."

"Yeah, maybe...he did, uh-" Dean stopped to clear his throat and looked towards the stairs momentarily before turning his eyes back to the angel, "he said I was 'his Dean'. On the first night, Cas."

"Interesting.." was all Cas had to say, apparently. Fine. Time to find out what's freaking you out, then.

"Yeah...so, Cas?"

"Yes?" Castiel didn't look up, and he was looking nervous again. No, he was bordering on panic.

"What's wrong? You've been a nervous wreck all night."

"I'm fine, Dean. Don't worry about me."

"Oh, you are so not fine. Dude, even Sam noticed you were being wierd - and he's never even met you before!" Dean paused, "Well, he has, but-"

"I know what you mean, Dean" interrupted Castiel, who finally looked up to meet the hunters gaze, "I suppose, then...we need to talk."


End file.
